Six Months Since
by bohufflepuff
Summary: A sequel to "It Wasn't Supposed to End Like This," set six months later.


**A/N:** I tried so hard to write a decent sequel to my other fic, but it just wasn't happening. In my mind, there is no happy ending here, and trying to force one felt unnatural. Instead, I offer this. It was heavily inspired by Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know," and the lyrics are included at the end.

I own neither the characters nor the song, and many thanks go out to onecelestialbeing for looking this over for me!

* * *

**Six Months Since**

It had been six months, and the memories still came. They often caught him unawares, choosing to make themselves known after he'd passed days without thinking of _her_.

Six months. Six long, painful months.

In his dreams, the events of _that day_ haunted him mercilessly. He could recall the expressions on her face with crystal-like clarity: anger, wounded pride, devastation, and finally, a steely defiance. He remembered every vicious word she spat at him, and could still feel the effects of the spells she flung at him in self-defense. And above all else, the sound of their front door closing that last time echoed in his mind, taunting him with the knowledge that she hadn't been through it since.

He didn't know where she was now; she had left no clues behind. It made him angry, knowing that she was out there, carrying a piece of him with her. Didn't he have a right to be informed? He knew he had made a grievous mistake, but wasn't she supposed to be stubbornly loyal? She should have forgiven him by now. She _would_ have, if she had relented enough to let him explain.

After examining his actions more thoroughly, he came to an obvious, logical conclusion. He had been lonely. Not for company, no, because she was all the company he needed. He had been lonely for a certain kind of understanding. As much as she tried, she never could understand the darker parts of him. That was something his _mistress_- oh, how he hated the dirty word- could. Narcissa had been as fully enamored with the Death Eaters as he had been, and she fully understood his mindset and his actions during those dark times. And sometimes, he needed to be with someone that had shared his experiences and did not judge him for them. Of course, _she_ never judged him, but it just wasn't the same.

Of course, ruminating over his infallible reasons brought his mind back to the events of _that night_: the exposure, the fight, the end of a marriage. He had been brooding over it for six long months, reveling in the despair the memories evoked in him. Occasionally, his melancholy would turn into anger. How dare she disappear, as if nothing had ever happened? How dare she cut him off so completely? He would never forget the rage he felt when those two idiot boys had showed up, claiming her possessions and taunting him with the knowledge that they were still close to her. They were still in contact, were still beloved. He had come close to murder that morning.

But none of that mattered now. He didn't know her anymore. It had been six months. She could be a completely different person, and he would never know.

* * *

It had been six months. In that time, her life had been completely turned upside down.

For one, she was now a mother. Looking at the child, a healthy, if slightly premature, boy, made her chest ache. The boy looked so much like _him_. He had dark eyes, dark hair, and a nose that most would consider unfortunate. As much as she loved the child, she couldn't suppress the feelings of anger she felt whenever she looked at him. Seeing _his_ features brought back the painful memories she had tried so hard to forget.

Whenever she dwelled on _that night_, she felt both betrayed and guilty. _He_ was the one that strayed, and his actions directly caused the situation in which she found herself today. But how did he get there in the first place? How did they go from having a happy, secure marriage to _this_? Was it partly her fault? Should she have been more supportive?

No. _No_. She couldn't afford to think that way. Wallowing in guilt and shame wouldn't help her now. She was responsible for another life now, in a very real way. She could cling to her righteous anger, but needed to let go of the other emotions. It wasn't her fault. _He_ was the one who had refused to let go of his dark past. _He_ risked their entire marriage on nothing more than a lonely whore. No, it wasn't her fault.

She would continue on with her life, focusing her attentions on her newborn son. She would continue to ensure that _he_ couldn't find them, keeping her life hidden. She didn't truly need him, and relenting even a little would only make her weak. Better to sequester herself than to risk exposure, and in doing so, risk her heart. There was no telling what he was capable of, if he ever did find her. He was a stranger to her now, and she doubted she ever really knew him at all.

* * *

"_Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye_

_Now and then I think of when we were together  
__Like when you said you felt so happy you could die  
__Told myself that you were right for me  
__But felt so lonely in your company  
__But that was love and it's an ache I still remember_

_You can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness  
__Like resignation to the end  
__Always the end  
__So when we found that we could not make sense  
__Well you said that we would still be friends  
__But I'll admit that I was glad that it was over_

_But you didn't have to cut me off  
__Make out like it never happened  
__And that we were nothing  
__And I don't even need your love  
__But you treat me like a stranger  
__And that feels so rough  
__You didn't have to stoop so low  
__Have your friends collect your records  
__And then change your number  
__I guess that I don't need that though  
__Now you're just somebody that I used to know_

_Now and then I think of all the times you screwed me over  
__But had me believing it was always something that I'd done  
__And I don't wanna live that way  
__Reading into every word you say  
__You said that you could let it go  
__And I wouldn't catch you hung up on somebody that you used to know..._

___But you didn't have to cut me off  
__Make out like it never happened  
__And that we were nothing  
__And I don't even need your love  
__But you treat me like a stranger  
__And that feels so rough  
__You didn't have to stoop so low  
__Have your friends collect your records  
__And then change your number  
__I guess that I don't need that though  
__Now you're just somebody that I used to know_

_I used to know  
__That I used to know_

_Somebody..._


End file.
